On example of a well-known poultry watering device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,444,149 issued to Y. Shomer entitled Poultry Watering Device which issued on Apr. 24, 1984. This device, as shown in FIG. 5, has a cup in which the tip 41 of a valve assembly 42 is positioned in an angled sleeve 43 at one side of the cup, and is connected by a stem 44 to a water supply line 45. The cup has a lower plate 46 extending downward from the bottom thereof which is inserted in a holding slot 47 of a mounting bracket 48 having a hook shown in the patent in FIG. 6a for hanging the cup and valve assembly sidewards from a wire cage or fence 50. Part of the fence wire 51 is removed to make room for the head of the poultry to be positioned over the cup.
Devices as shown in the prior art operate with cages having an opening 51. The wires used to form the cages as 52 are joined together by a weld or a solder joint 53. This can adversely affect the galvanization and leave the joint or wires subject to oxidation. Hence water and other matter such as mash can and does contact these wire areas to cause additional oxidation and corrosion. As one can understand the process will worsen based on old wire cages where oxidation has already begun and wire with lesser galvanization. Furthermore the bracket shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,444,149 forms a ledge or a shelf to enable mash or water to accumulate.
Another type of bracket has been provided to correct the above problem having a pair of hooks extending horizontally toward the fence in order to hold the cup and lower plate a short distance away from the fence. Also, the hooks on the bracket are spaced laterally apart on each side of the cup in order to distance their point of attachment to the fence from the vicinity of substances spilled by the poultry. However, this mounting bracket has the problem that fluid substances still tend to flow laterally on the top surfaces of the bracket to the hooks and thereby corrode the portions of the fence to which they are attached. Fluid and mash combinations also flow vertically and are directed to the lower attachments by means of this bracket.